Dan Goodsell Interview

December 19, 2007

There’s a great interview with Dan Goodsell, the tireless artist behind Mr. Toast and his “immersive world,” on Old Man Musings. I have admired Goodsell’s work for a while, and included him in a recent post on Z Recommends about artists to collect for young children. So I was pleased to have the chance to learn more about him. In the interview he cites his influences:

My childhood heroes were Dick Bruna (Miffy books), Ed Emberley (drawing books) and Bill Peet. Dick Bruna gave me my love of line. Ed Emberley taught me about the creation of worlds and populating them. Bill Peet taught about story and context. I didn’t know I was learning these things when I read their books as a kid but looking back as adult these are the things I strive to accomplish in my work.

All three have a ton of stuff online if you aren’t yet familiar with them:

Goodsell later cites Harry Nilsson’s film The Point as a major influence, which is a favorite of mine as well. The video segment from the film’s song “Think About Your Troubles” was featured in Z Recommends’ Toddler Arthouse Cinema last year in a set of music videos, along with videos for songs from Royksopp and Minilogue. You can watch them all here; the animation for the Nilsson film is brilliant. Who knew a decomposing whale could be so beautiful?